LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Raiden Series
built 287 days ago
A common belief is that the Raiden Fighters series is part of the original Raiden series. During the first Raiden Fighters' development, it went by the tentative working title of Gun Dogs. Seibu Kaihatsu changed the name to Raiden Fighters before its release. In pre-release market tests, Seibu Kaihatsu discovered that people paid more attention to the game when it had the word Raiden in its name. Two cameo ships from Seibu Kaihatsu's popular vertical-scrolling shooter games were added to coincide with the name change. There were originally only the five standard aircraft in the first game.
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Ive personally played and beaten (3x) Raiden III already and it is awesome. Red Star has been (2 years?) in the making for a long time..12.99 is a steal! Go neogaf! unite and form voltron!
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In the Raiden Fighters series, a Slave is a drone wingman that accompanies the player's craft, providing additional firepower, as well as protection from enemy fire. Players can have up to two Slave wingmen at one time. When players perform a charged special attack, their Slaves assume one of four different attack formations for the duration of that charged special. Slaves have more resilient armor than the player's own fighter craft; they can withstand multiple direct hits from enemy fire before being destroyed.
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The J2M5 Raiden Model 33 version retained the airframe of the J2M4, but was powered by a MK4U-4 Kasei 26a engine with a mechanically-driven three-stage supercharger. It had actually preceded the J2M4, having first flown in May of 1944. This installation proved to be more reliable than the turbo supercharger used by the J2M4. The J2M5 could reach a speed of 382 mph at 22,310 feet, and was the fastest version of the Raiden series. In addition, it had a wider and roomier cockpit which offered the pilot a better view. The appearance of the B-29 over Japan had created a sudden, urgent need for more capable interceptors, and the J2M5 was immediately ordered into production as the Model 33 at the Koza Kaigun Kokusho (Koza Naval Air Arsenal).
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In the Raiden Fighters series, sniper enemies are exclusively tanks. These tanks make delayed appearances onto the playfield, at times coming into view at the bottom half of the playfield, making for a surprise flank attack on the player. Some make sudden appearances during boss battles and even among usual Medal cache locations.
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The production of Raiden fighters by the Mitsubishi Jugogyo K K of all types totalled 476. The Raiden made its operational debut in September of 1944 over the Marianas during the Battle of the Philippine Sea, when a small number of Raidens had operated from Guam. A technical manual on the Raiden was discovered by American intelligence after the capture of Saipan, and the Raiden was assigned the Allied code name Jack. A small number of Raidens were deployed to the Philippines and were active during the invasion of these islands by the Americans.
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Raiden Series